A Detail Altered
by icer01
Summary: Written for meme request. Why did Edgeworth and Maya not 'exist' in GS4? Because Kristoph killed them, obviously. It was interesting to write this scenario. How will Phoenix cope?


_Written for meme request. Why did Edgeworth and Maya not 'exist' in GS4? Because Kristoph killed them, obviously. It was interesting to write this scenario._

Phoenix was still numbed with a certain aftershock of the disbarring incident, though his life was finally falling once more into a drearily functional pattern. Edgeworth and Maya had been immensely supportive and determined to help him, in all honesty he may not have found the will to survive without them.

Despite Phoenix's protests, both had thrown themselves into an undercover investigation of the disbarring incident. His friends were determined that this travesty of justice was corrected and Phoenix's reputation reinstated as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, it seemed his friends had underestimated the magnitude of evil lurking behind the singular forgery incident.

He'd never forget Maya's last phone call. "Hang in there, Nick!" she'd cried encouragingly. "It'll be okay. Do you need more stuff for Trucy? Anyway, I found out something.. interesting. I'll tell you when I see you."

Obviously someone had determined it was too 'interesting.' The next day, Phoenix received another phone call. The police.

_Maya Fey is dead. Poisoned._

"No." Phoenix's vision blurred. A clod of darkness impacted his pulsating head. "Noooo."

His hands limply gave way and dropped the phone.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"

Phoenix collapsed on the ground, retching, choking, suffocating, the world spinning and assaulting him like an array of darkened daggers.

"Maya.." he tried to wheeze, but he was unable to form any sound in his mouth.

'It's.. It's not true!" a last ditch thought seized him. It was beyond his comprehension. He scrabbled to retrieve his phone, it continuously slipping through his fingers in his desperation. He called Maya. No answer. He called Kurain. Some village elder answered. _Maya Fey is dead._

"No..." Phoenix's muscles failed to support him and he literally collapsed, devoid of energy. The world dimmed. The psychological shock was literally unbearable, and he slid into unconsciousness.

Phoenix didn't know how he survived Maya's funeral. When they lowered her coffin into the ground, it was all he could do not to jump in after her and hope to bury his torture along with her. Only the thought that Maya would not have wanted him to die also prevented him from doing so.

One thing was clear though. That Phoenix Wright who had been a lawyer had died and been buried today. Gone was the idealism, gone was the bashful goodwill. Gone was regard for rules and regulations. A severe harshness never before seen filled his eyes.

_I will bring Maya's murderer to justice if it's the last thing I do._

* * *

Edgeworth had tried to be supportive of Wright, but Wright had just gotten insanely mad and demanded Edgeworth go back to Europe and not try and help him. He was obviously paranoid after that terrible Maya incident. He'd felt it best to humour Wright, though he was still going to investigate matters in some capacity from afar.

Edgeworth was scrupulously careful, but there was no obscuring Edgeworth's past history as Wright's close friend and associate, and as far as Kristoph was concerned, all potential dangers should be eliminated.

So Edgeworth was unprepared for the hitman.

* * *

Phoenix's life existed through a torturous fog. He dragged himself through the motions for seemingly little reason at all, vaguely concentrating on just somehow making it through the day. Edgeworth's actual funeral had been in Europe (Phoenix certainly couldn't afford to attend), but Gumshoe had organised a small memorial ceremony in the local area. Phoenix had felt numbed, awash with nausea. How could everything be taken from him? It was surreal, almost incomprehensible.

He was just an empty shell. His external appearance soon became a facade.

The knowledge that Trucy was dependant on him was his sole motivation for dragging himself out of bed in the morning, for amassing the will to continue. She'd lost everything too. He ensured his darkest moments occurred when she was not present.

* * *

Since being a devoted parent was now his major motivation for living, he'd sworn not to touch alcohol. When he'd explained this at somewhere, they'd offered grape juice, insisted he try it. Phoenix disliked its sickly sweetness at first, but soon found the overpowerful sweetness and aftertaste were curiously distracting. At their sales pitch to sell him a whole crate, he'd swiftly given in.

Phoenix found himself descending into a well of deep depression. As he drooped wearily, head in hands, he happened to notice the grape juice crate. Maybe he'd have some, as a distraction..

Phoenix tried a bottle, hit anew by the impact of its suffocating sickly sweetness. He guzzled a second bottle, and a third.

He was beginning to feel sick, but it was a welcome sort of sick as it consumed his body and the forefront of his mind, banishing room for any dark negativity or temporal concerns.

By the 5th bottle he was receiving a massive sugar overdose, hurling him into a curiously crazed high.

By the 8th bottle, Phoenix reasoned with his remaining consciousness, it seemed you could get drunk on anything. The world swayed and shimmered slightly psychedelically.

When the crate was finished, Phoenix collapsed on top of it. The waves of illness were numbingly masochistically pleasurable. They consumed his entire conscious thought. Problems? He had no inlet to consider his problems. His stomach gurgled slightly. He wearily passed into slumber, clutching a grape juice bottle.

Phoenix was successfully addicted.

* * *

"NICK! Are you okay? Say something!"

Phoenix came to by slow degrees. He seemed to be drenched with sweat. Somebody was clutching his clammy hand tightly. Phoenix forced open his eyes, which bulged in disbelief. Maya and Trucy were leaning over him, eyes huge with concern.

"Maya! You're.. alive?" Phoenix breathed in wonder.

"Of course I'm alive! It's you we're worried about, you poor idiot!" cried Maya affectionately. Phoenix looked entirely confused, so she continued, "You came down sick, and got the most terrible fever. Trucy was so worried, she called me. We thought we might have to take you to hospital or something!"

She placed a hand to test his still-burning forehead.

"Is.. is Edgeworth alive?" enquired Phoenix.

"Huh? Of course he's alive!" Realisation suddenly dawned on Maya. "Did you have a nightmare? You poor thing!" Maya hugged him, and Trucy did too. "Are you okay?"

Phoenix hugged Trucy and Maya. "I am now."

--

_As you can see, I didn't have the heart to properly fill this prompt. By the time Edgeworth got shot, I was getting pretty depressed, especially when I realised it was all kind of a plausible scenario for the Maya-Edgeworthless GS4. So Phoenix wakes up! Or is it that they are really dead and the 'waking up' scene was just a grape juice induced delirium?? ((Kristoph cackles evilly))_


End file.
